Life Goes On
by Teddy1993
Summary: Voldemort is dead and the Second Wizarding War is finally over. Harry is looking forward to his last year at Hogwarts, but a proposal of the new Minister of Magic makes him wonder if Hogwarts is really where he should be. This is a post-war story in the same universe as 'What If' and 'This Is The End'.
1. Chapter 1: Family

**Chapter 1: Family**

Harry fell to the ground and all the air was pushed out of his lungs. He was wandless and without any means of defending himself. He looked up and saw the hideous face of his enemy. A cruel grin made the snake-like face even less human.

"You were right about one thing, Potter. This is the end."

Harry closed his eyes. A bright green light reached through his eyelids. The last thing he heard was the terrified scream of the girl he loved.

"No…"

"Harry!"

"No. Ginny…"

"Harry, wake up!"

Someone was shaking his shoulder firmly and Harry sat up in his bed, drowsiness still controlling his brain. Blindly, he grabbed his glasses from the nightstand beside his bed. After blinking a few times he realized that it was Remus and Tonks who were both looking down at him worriedly.

"Sorry." Harry mumbled, embarrassed by the fact that he was still affected by bad dreams this much.

Remus face softened and he and Tonks sat down on the rim of his bed. Tonks slowly stroked Harry's hair away from his brow. "Don't you ever apologise for having a nightmare." she said softly.

"You went through a whole lot, Harry." Remus said. "You fought in a war, for Merlin's sake. And you ended it. You're allowed to have bad dreams."

Before Harry could say anything they were interrupted by the arrival of Dobby, who shuffled inside, carrying a tray with three cups of steaming hot chocolate. The loyal House-Elf had moved back to Grimmauld Place with Harry, Remus and Tonks after the war. They insisted that he would take one of the spare bedrooms and after a lot of negotiating, Dobby agreed to move into the smallest bedroom of the house. That room happened to be the one next to Harry's and more than once the Elf had been woken during the night by Harry's moans or screams. Every time that happened, Dobby had made a cup of hot chocolate for Harry and had stayed with him until he fell asleep again. It had become sort of a ritual between the two friends.

"Thank you, Dobby." Remus said as the House-Elf placed the tray on Harry's nightstand.

"Is everything alright with Master Harry?" Dobby asked, looking at his idol.

"I'm fine, Dobby." Harry smiled at him reassuringly.

Satisfied by the fact that Remus and Tonks would watch over his favourite master, Dobby bowed to them and left Harry's bedroom.

"Did I wake you?" Harry asked as Remus handed him a cup of hot chocolate.

The werewolf shook his head. "We were just on our way to bed when we came past your room and heard you."

"Are these dreams bothering you a lot, Harry?" Tonks asked.

Harry shrugged. "Not every night, but quite regularly yes."

Remus bit his lower lip and seemed to be lost in his thoughts. Tonks looked at her fiancé meaningfully. "Maybe we should ask Severus to make it for him."

"Make what for me?"

"The Dreamless Sleep Potion." Remus explained. "And I guess you're right. But that's only a temporary solution. That potion can be dangerous if it is used abundantly."

"I don't need – " Harry started, but Tonks cut him off.

"Yes, you do."

Harry knew it would be pointless trying to argue with her, so he shrugged and drank his hot chocolate. To be honest, it was kind of nice to be fussed over like that. He never had caring parents around when he was younger, so when he was a little kid, there was no one there to comfort him and to tell him everything would be okay when he would wake up after a bad dream. Now he was almost seventeen years old, what would make him off age in the wizarding world, but the fact that Remus and Tonks were both there to make sure he was okay made him feel loved more than annoyed. Not that he would ever admit that to anyone. When the two adults had left him alone, Harry fell asleep peacefully for the first time in months.

Harry woke the next morning, feeling unusually well rested. When he arrived downstairs in the kitchen, he cheerfully wished the rest of his family good morning.

"What are you doing up this early?" he asked Jacinta, while Tonks poured him a cup of tea. "I'm not used to seeing you before 10 o'clock during the holidays."

"Tonks is taking me to work with her today!" Jacinta said excitedly. She had been looking forward to seeing the Auror Office ever since Tonks had gone back to work. Tonks had put off taking her as long as possible, because there were still a lot of Death Eaters on the loose and she could be called on a mission any time. Today however, she would be forced to do some paperwork. Gawain Robards, who succeeded Kingsley as Head of the Auror Office, wasn't as strict as his appearance told you, but she had been delaying it for weeks.

"Is she now?" Harry smiled. "Don't let them talk you into joining them after you graduate. Only crazy people want to be Aurors." He winked at Tonks, who was raising her eyebrows at him.

"But you want to be an Auror!" Jacinta laughed.

"Exactly my point."

After Tonks and Jacinta had left for the Ministry, Remus turned to Harry. "So, what are you up to today?" he asked as Dobby was clearing the table.

Harry shrugged. "Ginny, Ron and Hermione might stop by this afternoon. If Mrs Weasley will let Ginny and Ron go, that is."

The Weasleys and the Grangers had stayed at Grimmauld Place during the first weeks after the war, but had now moved back to their own homes. The Burrow had been almost completely destroyed, much to the distress of Mr and Mrs Weasley, but with the help of their five oldest sons and the members of the Order of the Phoenix they had been able to restore the house completely. Both The Burrow and the Grangers' house still had some protective enchantments on them, monitored by the Ministry and Kingsley had made sure that both houses were guarded by Aurors. Although the war was over, they couldn't be sure that there weren't any Death Eaters out there, seeking revenge.

Mrs Weasley was still keeping watch over her family as a Bowtruckle watching over its tree. She didn't like Ron and Ginny leaving the house very much, even if they just used the Floo Network to visit Harry at Grimmauld Place. A feeling that was even strengthened by her other children leaving the Burrow and starting their own lives. Bill and Fleur had moved into Shell Cottage, on the outskirts of Tinworth. It was a small, cosy house at the beach. It had once belonged to Molly's aunt Muriel and seeing as she had always been fond of her niece's oldest son, she had allowed them to live there, despite the fact that she didn't fully approve of the relationship between Bill and Fleur. Charlie had moved back to Romania to work with his beloved dragons and Fred and George had moved back to the flat above their shop in Diagon Alley. Weasley's Wizard Wheezes had reopened after the war and business was better than ever. Of course Fred and George had cleverly used Harry's victory over Voldemort to their advantage. They developed a wide range of Anti-Voldemort and Anti-Death Eater products, based on earlier inventions like Edible Dark Marks and U-No-Poo.

"Molly won't forbid them from coming." Remus said reassuringly. "She knows how close you are." Harry didn't ask if he meant Ron or Ginny. "I was thinking about going to Godric's Hollow this morning." Remus continued. "I haven't really been there since the war ended. You want to come?"

"Sure." Harry said. "It's been a long time since we visited them."

Remus nodded. Both of them remembered the last time they visited Sirius' and Lily and James' graves vividly. Not only had Remus told him that he would be marrying Tonks in a week then, they also walked straight into an ambush of the Death Eaters. They had been lucky that they were close enough to the Potter house and that they were able to send a message to Dumbledore's Army and the Order of the Phoenix. Harry grew quiet as he thought about that day and how proud he had felt about his fellow DA members, but he would remember that day for more than one reason. Not only had Ginny almost been attacked by Greyback, it was also the day that Draco Malfoy had proven his loyalty, although they still falsely accused him of being a Death Eater after seeing the Dark Mark on his arm. Harry remembered that he had saved Malfoy's life back then by inadvertently killing his uncle, Rodolphus Lestrange. He realized now that that was probably the reason that Malfoy came back to fight at the Battle of Hogwarts instead of fleeing and saving himself.

"Are we apparating?" Harry asked as Remus summoned their coats.

Remus shook his head. "Not this time. We're taking the Floo."

"The Floo?" Harry asked, confused. He knew it would be impossible to use the Floo Network of the Potter house.

"There's someone I want you to meet." Remus smiled. "An old friend of mine. She has been eager to meet you for quite some time, but with everything that's been going on… She went into hiding herself over the past year."

"Who?"

"You'll see." Remus smiled. "Just follow me." He grabbed a hand of Floo Powder out of the pot by the fireplace, threw it in the fire and shouted: "Willow Cottage!"

Harry shrugged and followed the werewolf. After the uncomfortable feeling of passing through dozens of fireplaces, Harry tumbled out of the right one and landed stretched out on the rug before the hearth.

Remus was grinning broadly as he offered Harry his hand to pull him up. "You defeated the most evil wizard known to humankind and ended one of the greatest wars in wizarding history, but you can't step out of a fireplace decently, can you?"

"Oh, shut it." Harry grumbled as he allowed Remus to pull him up. Only then he saw the old lady that was sitting in one of the armchairs in front of the fire. She was smiling at him and raised from the chair with difficulty.

"Harry, this is one of my oldest friends and also one of the oldest friends of your parents, Sirius and Dumbledore." Remus said as the woman shook his hand.

"Bathilda Bagshot." she introduced herself. "It is an honour to meet you."

"Bathilda – wait a minute…" Harry looked at Remus, who nodded. "You wrote 'A History of Magic. Your one of the most important magical historians in the country!"

"Well, I don't know about that." Bathilda said modestly.

"It's an honour to meet you, miss Bagshot."

"Call me Bathilda." the old woman said. She gestured at two other armchairs in front of the fire. "But why don't we sit down? Holly has made tea."

As if on cue, a female House-Elf, who looked as if she was at least as old as Bathilda was, entered the living room, carrying a tray with three cups of tea and a plate of freshly baked cookies.

"I have been wanting to meet you for a long time, Harry." Bathilda said when they were all provided with a cup of tea. "Albus always spoke very highly of you. But of course you have been rather occupied over the last few years!"

"You really knew Professor Dumbledore well then?" Harry asked eagerly.

"Oh yes, my boy. I don't think there are a lot of people who knew him so well as I did. Except for Aberforth of course, and maybe dear old Elphias. I was very sad to hear about his passing."

"We all were." Remus said sadly. "He was a great man. It's a shame he didn't live to see the end of the war."

"To be honest, I think he never expected to." Bathilda said thoughtfully. "He never really said it. You know how he is, always speaking in riddles. But the last couple of times that I spoke to him, I got the feeling that he was convinced he had played his part in this world."

"I don't think a life time would be long enough for him to play his part." Harry said softly. "He was the greatest wizard in this world."

"That he was." Bathilda admitted. "And he has always used those powers to help others and to fight the dark arts. But he seemed certain that there would be another powerful wizard to continue his work when he was gone." She looked at Harry meaningfully.

Remus looked at him proudly, but Harry frowned. "I'm not nearly as powerful as he was. And I doubt I will ever be."

"Only the future can tell us that." Bathilda said calmly.

"You don't think there will be another war, do you?" Harry asked carefully.

Bathilda laughed. "Oh Merlin, no."

"I think what Bathilda means is that Voldemort is not the only dark wizard." Remus said. "Surely, he was the most powerful and the most cruel that the wizarding world has seen in years, probably centuries. But he was still only one of them. I'm afraid the dark arts will always exist. Dumbledore fought against them his entire life. It was his only concern beside teaching."

"It's a good thing that I'm beginning Auror training next year, then." Harry said.

Remus thoughts wandered away from the conversation as Harry and Bathilda talked about Dumbledore and Harry's parents. He knew that Harry was a very powerful wizard. He had seen him fight on various occasions and had seen his abilities develop. At the Battle of Hogwarts even he, who knew about what happened to Harry when he was hit by Voldemort's Killing Curse a year ago, had been amazed to see what an accomplished duellist Harry was now. He had been blissfully happy and extremely proud when Harry killed Voldemort. Now he was still proud as he heard Harry's determination to join the Aurors and still fight the dark arts. On the other hand, he had to admit to himself that he was silently hoping that Harry would change his choice of career. It was already hard enough on him to see Tonks leave for work every morning and not being sure that she would come back to him. Remus loved her with all his heart and he would be devastated if something happened to her. But if he were to lose Harry, the closest thing he had ever had to a son and the last remaining link to Lily and James and Sirius… He felt like that would be the end of his world as well.

"_**There's no way I could pay you back, but the plan is to show you that I understand." – **_**Tupac Shakur (Dear Mama)**

**A/N: I decided to take a break from writing after I finished 'This Is The End', but I already missed it after a few days. I'm afraid I won't be able to update as frequently as during the last two stories, as I am starting with my new job tomorrow and things will probably be rather busy during the next couple of weeks. This is the first chapter of my new story. I really hope you will like it. Please let me know what you think!**

**Teddy**


	2. Chapter 2: Fame

**Chapter 2: Fame**

"She's an interesting witch." Harry said as they passed the tall willow tree in Bathilda's frontyard and made their way through Godric's Hollow towards the graveyard.

"She most definitely is." Remus smiled. "And she was very fond of your parents, but I think you have noticed that."

"Kind of." Harry said, smiling too. Bathilda had spent a big part of their visit talking about what great neighbours Lily and James were and how sad everyone in the village was when they were killed.

They reached the wooden gate of the graveyard. Harry and Remus grew quiet as they walked towards the graves of Harry's parents.

"Do you want me to give you a minute?" Remus asked softly as they stood before the white tombstone.

Harry gave him a weak smile and shook his head. "No, it's okay." He kneeled before the graves and softly touched the cold stone. Tears were burning in his eyes as he thought about the life that he never had. Somehow, it now seemed even more unfair than ever. When Voldemort had been alive, a normal life with his parents had seemed like something from another universe. Now that he was dead and the war was over, Harry would finally be able to live a normal life. The life that he could have had if his parents had still been alive had never seemed closer, but still it was something he would never have.

Remus kneeled beside him and put his hand on Harry's shoulder. "They are proud of you, you know."

"I hope so." Harry said softly.

After visiting Sirius' grave, they made their way back towards the gate. When they got there, they were met by a young man. He was wearing a black suit and he didn't seem to be much older than Harry.

"Good afternoon." Remus said friendly.

"Good afternoon to you, sir." the man said. "I see you visited the grave of Sirius Black. Are you relatives of him by any chance?"

"Not by blood, I'm afraid." Remus said.

The man nodded and looked at Harry. His mouth opened slightly and his eyes drifted to the lightning shaped scar on his forehead.

"You're a wizard." Harry said.

Remus looked at him warningly, but the man smiled. "I'm a Muggle, I'm afraid. But I know all about you." He smiled when he saw their confused expressions. "I'm the new reverend in town. My father retired a couple of months ago and I succeeded him."

"Then you must be reverend Thompson's son!" Remus said.

"Call me Angus." the reverend smiled. "You know my father?"

"I do." Remus said. "Lily and James Potter were two of my best friends. They introduced me to him."

"Then you must be Remus!" Angus said excitedly. "I heard a lot about you, growing up. It's a pity my father is travelling at the moment, he would have been delighted to see you again. But why don't you come inside for a bit?"

He led them towards a big, white house next to the church. He offered them a cup of tea, but Harry and Remus both declined politely.

"My father came upon something a while ago." Angus said while he was rummaging around in the top drawer of his desk. "He left it here somewhere. Aha!" He pulled out a large picture frame. "We've been looking forward to seeing you here." he said to Harry. "We thought you might want to have this."

Harry took the picture frame from Angus and smiled when he saw what it was. Lily and James were smiling and waving at him. Lily was looking absolutely beautiful in a long, white wedding dress. James was smiling broadly next to her, his hair as untidy as ever. Behind them Harry recognized Sirius as the best man and Remus and Peter Pettigrew as groomsmen. Next to them, there were three young women, who must have been the bridesmaids. Harry recognized a much younger Andromeda, but when he saw who was standing there as Lily's maid of honour, he was rather shocked. He had only seen that face once before, in an old photograph of the original Order of the Phoenix. It was Alice Longbottom, Neville's mother, who was now in St Mungo's. She looked happy for the couple in front of her and was smiling widely. Harry felt sick when he thought about what happened to her later. What happened to all of them. Remus and Andromeda were the only two people in the photograph that were still alive and they had both lost more than anyone should be able to bear.

"Why did you think he was a wizard?" Remus asked as they arrived back at Grimmauld Place.

"He recognized me." Harry said. "It's the first time I was recognized by a Muggle."

"Well, to be honest, he has some wizard blood." Remus smiled. "His father was a Squib." he explained when he saw Harry's confused face. "He took the job as reverend in Godric's Hollow to assure that the magical and Muggle community would live in peace. There are a lot of magical families living in Godric's Hollow."

After a delicious lunch, prepared by Dobby, Harry and Remus sat together in the kitchen of Grimmauld Place and discussed Harry's plans for the future. After about an hour, they were interrupted by the arrival of Ginny Weasley, Harry's girlfriend. Remus tactfully looked the other way as the two teenagers greeted each other as if they hadn't seen each other in months.

"Gross." came a voice from behind Ginny.

Harry looked up and grinned when he saw his best mate stepping out of the fireplace.

"You're one to talk." Ginny shot back. "You're the one groping Hermione in the middle of our living room. You'd think that you would have the decency to go to your room."

"Yeah, like mom would let us." Ron laughed. "How are you, mate?" he asked, shaking Harry's hand.

"Fine." Harry grinned. "Everything alright with Hermione, I hear?"

"Yeah, it's great." Ron said. "She's coming here too. I told her you'd be okay with it. Hi, Remus."

"Oh, hi." Ginny said shyly. She hadn't seen that Remus was in the room until just now and felt rather self-conscious about kissing Harry like that in front of him.

"Good afternoon." Remus said, suppressing a grin. "How are your parents?"

"Pretty good." Ron said. "Dad is rather busy at the Ministry. We don't see him that much."

Mr Weasley had gotten a promotion at the Ministry of Magic after the war. Kingsley Shacklebolt, the new Minister had appointed him as the new Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement. The Department had been so corrupt during Voldemort's reign that Mr Weasley had had a difficult job cleaning up the mess from the last year and with Death Eaters still on the loose and all the trials of those who were captured, he hadn't been home much lately.

"Mum wanted us to invite you all for dinner though." Ginny said, smiling at Remus. "And she won't take no for an answer."

"We wouldn't dare to decline." Remus smiled. "So, what are you guys up to today?"

"We thought about going to Diagon Alley." Ron said. "We haven't been to Fred and George's shop since last year."

"You want to come with us?" Harry asked.

"I can't." Remus said. "I have an appointment this afternoon."

"An appointment?" Harry looked at the werewolf surprised. He hadn't said anything about an appointment before. "Something for the wedding?"

"Kind of." Remus said hesitatingly.

"What are you hiding?" Harry asked.

Remus opened his mouth, but didn't seem to be able to come up with something to say. Luckily for him, everyone was distracted by the arrival of Hermione. Ron had his arm around her, the moment she had stepped out of the fireplace.

Ginny rolled her eyes at Harry. "All summer. They're worse than Bill and Fleur when they first started dating. Thank Merlin we're going back to Hogwarts in a couple of weeks."

Harry laughed. "You'll be around them at Hogwarts too."

"Yeah, but at least you'll be there too." Ginny said softly so only Harry could understand her. "I'll be too occupied to be annoyed by them."

Ron and Hermione finally let go of each other. Hermione reddened slightly when she saw Harry and Ginny's grins, but she quickly walked towards them and embraced them both. "It's so good to see you!" she said.

"It's great to see you too." Harry smiled.

After chatting for a while, the four friends were getting ready to leave for Diagon Alley.

Remus urged them to be careful. "I'm sure Diagon Alley is perfectly safe, but don't let your guard down. You never know. And keep your D.A. coins close."

"Sure." Harry said. "See you later, Remus. And good luck with your… appointment."

"What do you mean, appointment?" Hermione asked as she had followed Harry out of the fireplace of the Leaky Cauldron.

Harry shrugged. "He didn't want to say what it was."

"I thought he said it was wedding stuff?" Ron said.

"He was lying." Harry said simply. "You don't think he would – you know – cheat on Tonks?"

"No way." Ron said. "Remus would never do that!" He looked at his three friends who didn't seem so convinced. "Would he?"

"I don't think so…" Harry said slowly. "But he never lied to me before."

"I'm sure there's a good reason." Ginny said reassuringly. "It's Remus we're talking about here. He's like the nicest guy in the world."

Harry nodded, but before he could say something they were interrupted by a gruff voice. "Are you coming in or are you just going to keep blocking the Floo?" They looked up and they saw Tom, the barman of the Leaky Cauldron glaring at them. Then he recognized them and his frown disappeared instantly. "Mr Potter and his friends!" he said excitedly. The moment he said the name Potter everyone in the tavern stopped talking, they were all looking at them for a moment and then they all crowded around them.

Harry was strongly reminded of the first time he had come to the Leaky Cauldron. Then too, everyone had wanted to meet him and shake his hand. The only difference was that he wasn't the only one to get attention now. Ginny, Ron and Hermione had all been recognized too and seemed to be almost just as popular as Harry. It took them nearly half an hour to get outside.

"Bloody hell." Ron said as they walked through Diagon Alley. "Why didn't we Floo directly to Fred and George? Those guys were mental."

"That was surreal." Ginny said. "How do you do it?" she asked Harry.

Harry laughed. "You get used to it." he said. "But I must say I'm glad I'm not the only one anymore."

"Yeah, what was that about?" Ron asked. "It was like we are famous too."

"You are famous too." Harry said simply.

"How's that?"

"You really should start reading a paper once in a while, Ron." Hermione said. "They have been writing about us rather frequently since the war ended."

"Really? About us too?" Ginny asked, who seemed to be just as surprised as Ron was.

"Yes. About a lot of D.A. members actually. Of course, they don't know everyone who was a part of it, but a lot of people have seen us fighting during the final battle. And being Harry Potter's best friends, it's not really hard to guess."

"We're here." Harry announced. They had reached number 97 and looked at the familiar, colourful window of Weasley's Wizard Wheezes.

The shop was as crowded as ever and the four teenagers had to squeeze their way between all the people to get to the back of the shop. There they ran into George.

"Hi guys!" George said happily. "We didn't know you were coming. It's great to see you!" He embraced all of them. When he let go of Harry, he winked at him and said: "Actually, we just got something new today. Come to the back, I'll show you."

George led them to a door in the back of the shop, Harry had never been through before. When George opened it, he saw that it was the twins' storeroom. They were pleasantly surprised to see Luna, who was gathering boxes to stock the supplies in the shop.

"Oh hi, guys!" Luna said happily when she saw them.

They greeted her enthusiastically. "What are you doing here?" Ron asked.

"I'm working here for the summer." Luna said.

"Fred hired her." George said meaningfully when Luna had gone back into the shop. "But she's actually quite nice to have around." He was searching one of the bottom shelves of the nearest rack. "Aha." He took one of the boxes and turned back to his friends. "Remember those Patented Daydream Charms we had?"

They all nodded. "That was really advanced magic." Hermione said. "You didn't make those yourselves, did you?"

"No, we didn't." George said. "If we did, we would have come up with something better than the soppy love stories they gave us. Point is, we have been working on developing our own Daydream Charms and we finally succeeded. We just made it a little more interesting." He opened the box and pulled out four little phials of potion. He grinned when he saw that they were all looking at it warily. "Trust me, it's completely safe. I'll even do it with you." he added when he saw that they were still not convinced.

They all drank the potions and they immediately started daydreaming. The first thing Harry saw was himself. He was shocked to see Voldemort, but then he realized what this was. It was the final battle. Harry and Voldemort were duelling each other, but for some reason their wands were connected by a golden beam of light. Harry watched as Voldemort broke the connection. He saw how both of them were thrown backwards, how Voldemort was quicker than Harry and was pointing his wand at him. Then he heard the beautiful song and he saw how Fawkes arrived and dropped the Sorting Hat at his feet. The sword of Gryffindor, Voldemort's surprise and then his shout of fear and pain as Harry stabbed him with the sword. Suddenly Harry startled as if he had been woken up out of a deep sleep. He looked around hem and saw that the others were slowly coming back to their senses too.

"Wow." Ron said.

"That was really…" Hermione said slowly.

"Realistic." Ginny added.

"I hope you don't mind, Harry." George said, looking at his friend with an uncharacteristic hint of concern in his eyes. "We aren't selling them yet and we definitely won't if you don't want us too."

"No, I think it's great." Harry said. "It's a great way for people to find out what really happened, so they won't have to believe some of the rubbish they have been writing." There had appeared stories that told how Harry had chopped Voldemort to pieces or how he had cut his heart out with the sword.

"Exactly our thoughts." George said, clearly relieved by Harry's reaction. "And you probably noticed that we – er – altered it a bit.

Harry nodded. The duel between Harry and Voldemort had been very lifelike and it had been shown exactly how it happened, but the twins had excluded some of the more horrid details. There had been no dead bodies or body parts on the ground and Harry was sure that he hadn't looked so good during the battle as he had in the dream.

George led them back to the shop and left his four friends to explore the products, while he went and helped some customers. Harry was happy to see some of his other friends from the D.A., like Neville, Parvati and Lavender. They were all excited to start their N.E.W.T. year, but they were also sad as they realized they wouldn't be complete anymore. Dean Thomas, their friend and classmate, had given his life during the Battle of Hogwarts. Mrs Weasley had done everything she could to save his life, but it had been too late.

"How's Seamus doing, by the way?" Ron asked.

They all looked at Lavender. She and Seamus weren't officially dating, but there had been something more between them for quite some time. "He's still at St Mungo's." Lavender said softly. "He's recovering quite well, actually. He's allowed to have visitors since yesterday."

"We'll go and visit him soon then." Harry said.

Lavender smiled at him. "He'll like that. He says he's already bored at the hospital and he'd rather go back home today than tomorrow, but… I'm worried about him." She swallowed and held back her tears.

Parvati put an arm around her shoulders. "Seamus is really taking it hard… you know."

They all nodded. Seamus and Dean had been best friends since their first day at Hogwarts, much like Harry and Ron. Harry didn't want to think about what it would feel like if he had lost Ron. He loved Ginny more than anything and he loved Hermione like a sister, but Ron had been the first friend he ever had. He had helped Harry to find his way in the wizarding world and he had been the first one who showed Harry what it was like to have a family. He could only imagine what Seamus was going through now and he swore to himself that he would visit his friend as soon as possible.

"Harry?"

"What? Sorry." he said quickly.

Ron was looking at him with an amused expression on his face. "We lost you there for a moment." he grinned. "Anyway, we were discussing who McGonagall would appoint as Head Boy and Girl. Hermione _thinks _she might have a shot at the Head Girl position."

They all laughed at Hermione's flustered face. "Might have a shot? She's kidding right?" Harry muttered to Ron so only he could hear it.

"You know, I really don't think she is." Ron mumbled back.

"So Neville, you think you might have a shot for Head Boy?" Ginny asked.

"Not really, no." Neville grinned. "But I don't really care that much about it." They all laughed again when Hermione looked at him unbelievingly. "I really don't. I just want to enjoy my last year."

"Hear, hear." Harry said. "It'll be nice to finally have a quiet year at Hogwarts."

"There's no such thing as a quiet year at Hogwarts." Ginny grinned.

"Certainly not with us there." Ron added.

When Neville, Lavender and Parvati had left, the four others decided to go back to Grimmauld Place. Tonks and Jacinta would probably be home already. When they said goodbye to the twins and Luna, Fred recommended them to take their Floo instead of going back to the Leaky Cauldron.

"Why?" Hermione asked.

"Haven't you looked outside?" Fred asked amused. He led them to the front of the shop and when they looked through the window, they saw a small army of journalists and photographers. "They must have found out you're here. If you'd rather face them, be my guest, but they'll crush you like doxies."

"Bloody hell." Ron muttered as he looked at the crowd before the shop. "You're right. I'm not going out there."

They used the twins' fireplace to Floo back to Grimmauld Place. When they stepped out of the fireplace of the kitchen, they were met by Remus and Jacinta.

"Tonks is changing." Remus said. "We'll go to the Burrow soon."

When Tonks arrived in the kitchen, they saw she was wearing her hair long and she had changed the colour to a flaming red. She looked like she might be Ginny's older sister. "I'm already in Weasley mood!" she said happily as she joined them at the kitchen table. "Oh Remus, I forgot to ask! How did your in – "

"Fine!" Remus said quickly. "It was fine."

Harry looked from Remus to Tonks, confused. He was quite relieved Tonks knew about Remus' appointment this afternoon. Surely, that meant that Remus couldn't be cheating on her? The werewolf was carefully avoiding Harry's eyes, afraid that he might see something in his mind. Harry knew he would probably be able to find out what Remus was hiding without him noticing he was using Legilimency, but he didn't feel quite right about that. Remus had done so much for Harry, it would feel like a terrible betrayal to invade his mind to find out something he didn't want Harry to know. Instead of asking about it, Harry changed the subject to their trip to Diagon Alley today.

"I pretty much expected that." Remus said when they told him about the reporters and photographers in front of Weasley's Wizard Wheezes. "They all want to hear the story about the war from Harry Potter. And they all want to be the first one to publish an interview with you."

"I don't do interviews." Harry said grimly.

"I know you don't like the publicity, Harry, but maybe it wouldn't be a bad thing to consider it." Tonks said calmly. "I'm not saying they would leave you alone if you do it, but you would at least be able to appear in public without getting smothered."

"But they'll just change everything I say." Harry protested. "Just like last time."

"Maybe there's one magazine that won't." Ginny said meaningfully.

_**Fame means millions of people have the wrong idea of who you are." – Erica Jong**_


	3. Chapter 3: Dinner at the Burrow

**Chapter 3: Dinner at the Burrow**

_Dear Luna_

_It was good to see you at the store today, even if just for a minute. I hope you are enjoying your summer so far and everything is going well with you and Fred. _

_I'm writing you to ask for a favour. I was kind of followed to Weasley's Wizard Wheezes today by a bunch of reporters and photographers. Luckily, Fred and George didn't allow them in the store, but it would be quite inconvenient if I were bothered like that every time I want to leave the house. We think that the chaos would lessen if I would give one interview to talk about everything that happened during the war. Due to earlier experiences, I'd rather not talk with someone from the Daily Prophet or Witch Weekly. That's why I thought that maybe your dad would be able to help me out with the Quibbler. Maybe you could check with him if he might be interested? You would do me a great favour._

_Hope to hear from you soon!_

_Love Harry_

Harry sealed the envelope and called Hedwig. His loyal snowy white owl waited patiently until Harry had bound the letter to her leg and had carried her to the window.

"Bring this to Luna, alright?" Harry said softly. "You know where to find her."

Hedwig screeched softly and bit his finger affectionately, before she left to deliver the letter. Harry went back downstairs to the kitchen where the others were waiting for him to go the Burrow.

"You ready?" Ron asked. "I'm starving."

They all used the Floo Network to travel to the Burrow. The moment Harry stepped out of the fireplace, he was pulled in a firm hug by Mrs Weasley.

"Harry dear. How are you?"

"I'm good, thanks." Harry smiled at her. He had missed Mrs Weasley's concern and fussing over him more than he cared to admit.

"Come to the living room, dears." Mrs Weasley said as Remus, Tonks, Jacinta and her two youngest children appeared. "Arthur is already home. He was able to leave a bit earlier today."

Indeed, Mr Weasley was sitting in his favourite chair in the living room with a glass of brandy. He looked very tired, but content nonetheless. When he saw that the guests had arrived, Mr Weasley raised from his chair and greeted them enthusiastically. "It has been too long." he said, shaking Harry's hand.

"It's good to see you again, Mr Weasley." Harry said politely. "I heard about your promotion. Congratulations!"

"Thank you." Arthur smiled. "It came as quite a surprise. It's a big step from the Misuse of Muggle Artefacts Office."

"Dad still misses the toasters and slewdrivers." Ginny grinned.

"Screwdrivers." Mr Weasley corrected her. "And I don't _miss _them. I just think that we could learn a lot from the Muggles."

"I'm sure you must have learned a lot from them already, judging by all the rubbish that you keep in that shed." Mrs Weasley said as she was making her way back to the kitchen.

Everyone laughed at the apologetic look on Mr Weasley's face. "Remind me to take you there after dinner." he said to Harry as they followed Mrs Weasley to the kitchen. "I have been working on Sirius' old motorcycle whenever I found the time. I want to show it to you."

Harry smiled and nodded, before they joined the others at the kitchen table. Mrs Weasley had cooked a delicious dinner as always. Despite the fact that Dobby was an excellent cook himself, Harry still missed Mrs Weasley's cooking.

"How is everything going at the Ministry, Arthur?" Remus asked after a while. "We haven't seen Kingsley in quite some time. But he must be very busy, of course."

"He is." Arthur said seriously. "You wouldn't believe what a mess that Umbridge woman has made during her career as Minister. But we were finally able to get into Azkaban."

"What do you mean, finally able to?" Harry asked confused.

"The Dementors have returned there after Voldemort died." Remus explained before Mr Weasley could say something. "Kingsley decided not to work together with them anymore, even if they agree to just stay at Azkaban as prison guards. He doesn't want to make the same mistakes as his predecessors."

"Well, that's a good decision, isn't it?"

"It is." Mr Weasley agreed. "But not a very popular one. Of course there are a lot of people who realize the Dementors don't feel any loyalty to any wizard whatsoever, not even the Ministry. Unfortunately, there are also a lot of people who are angry, because they think there will be lack of security now that there won't be any Dementors in Azkaban. But I can tell you, they weren't easy to get rid of. And the problem was that we couldn't get into the fort as long as they were there."

"Why did you have to get into Azkaban?" Ron frowned. "It hasn't been used since all of the Death Eaters escaped, has it?"

"Apparently, it has." Tonks said. "Voldemort and Umbridge used it to lock up anyone who opposed them. Not everyone was lucky enough to find refuge at Hogwarts."

"We were able to free all of them and we were quite happy to see a lot of people that were believed to be dead." Mr Weasley said. "Ollivander and Florean Fortescue, among others."

"Anyway, we were able to move all of the Death Eaters that were being held into custody at the Ministry to Azkaban." Tonks continued. "Well, my colleagues were. I was stuck inside all day during paperwork." She still seemed annoyed that she had missed out on all the action today.

After dinner, Mr Weasley took Harry with him to his shed to show him Sirius' old motorcycle. It was the first time Harry had seen it since Hagrid had used it to get him to the Dursleys all those years ago, but he was far too young then to remember it.

"He didn't use it anymore, did he?" Harry said as he watched the bike with interest.

"No, he didn't." Mr Weasley smiled. "He had two kids to take care of. He couldn't act like a dare-devil anymore."

"At least not all the time." Harry smirked.

Mr Weasley laughed. "I guess even Sirius Black has gotten responsible over the years." He then showed Harry everything he had done with the bike. "It was actually broken when I got it. I think it had been for quite some time and Sirius just never got around to fixing it. I don't think it mattered so much to him as he didn't use it anymore. He knew I would love to work on it. I think that's why he left it to me. I hardly think he expected me to use it."

Before they left the shed to go back to the others, Mr Weasley said: "So, you and Ginny are still very much in love then?"

Harry swallowed. He wasn't particularly looking forward to this conversation with his girlfriend's father. Actually, he had hoped that it would never come. "Yes." he said finally. "We are."

Mr Weasley smiled. "Relax, Harry. I'm not going to threaten you. I'm not even going to tell you not to break her heart. I know that is the last thing that you would want to do."

"It is."

Mr Weasley nodded. "I just wanted to tell you that I'm very happy for both of you. I couldn't approve more of her choice of boyfriend and I sincerely hope that you can stay together. When Ron brought you here to stay with us, I gained a son. It would be nice if you really would be one day."

"I hope so too, Mr Weasley. I really do love her." Harry said.

"I know you do, son."

They were interrupted by a soft knocking on the door. Mr Weasley opened it and Ginny walked inside. "Professor McGonagall is here to see us." she said to Harry. "She's waiting in the living room."

"Oh, alright." Harry said quickly. He sincerely hoped Ginny hadn't heard anything from the conversation with her father. He really did want to marry her someday, but he didn't want her to expect a proposal just yet.

When Harry had entered the living room, Ginny quickly kissed her dad on the cheek and smiled at him before she followed her boyfriend.

"Good evening, Harry." Professor McGonagall said as one of her favourite students entered.

"Good evening, Professor." Harry smiled. "It's good to see you. But how did you know I was here?"

"Likewise. And after I arrived at Grimmauld Place and found the place deserted, the Burrow was the only place I could really think of."

"To what do we owe the pleasure, Minerva?" Mr Weasley asked as everyone had sat back down.

"I'm here to give the children their Hogwarts letters." Professor McGonagall said. She pulled out four envelopes with the Hogwarts crest on it.

"Does the headmistress delivers the letters personally to the students now?" Tonks asked surprised.

"Well, no." McGonagall admitted. "But in certain cases… I don't want to favour any students, but there are some of them who have done so much for the school…" She looked at Harry, Ron, Hermione and Ginny proudly. It was a look they didn't see a lot over the years, except for Hermione perhaps. The new headmistress handed them their letters.

There fell a silence as they all tore open the envelopes and read the letters. Hermione had only opened her letter for two seconds when she shrieked and jumped out of her chair. "I'm Head Girl." she said excitedly.

"What a surprise." Harry said dully as he read to his letter. "We could have told you that three years – " He abruptly stopped talking.

"What is it?" Ginny asked.

"I'm Head Boy." Harry said slowly.

Hermione shrieked again. "Oh, that's great!"

Harry looked at Professor McGonagall, who was smiling at him. "I realize it is quite rare that someone becomes Head Girl or Boy without being named a Prefect, but it does happen sometimes."

"I remember the last time it happened." Remus said, smiling proudly at Harry and Harry realized he was talking about his dad.

"Congratulations, mate." Ron said. "But don't go snogging my girlfriend when you're patrolling the corridors at night."

"Ron!" Hermione said shocked, but everyone else was laughing. Even Mrs Weasley and Professor McGonagall were smiling faintly.

When everyone had put away their letters, Professor McGonagall cleared her throat. "There is a second reason for my visit." she said. "Remus, I have talked to the other candidates this afternoon. They were all motivated and suited for the job, but I still think you would be the best choice. The job is yours if you want it."

Tonks squealed and hugged Remus, who didn't seem to know what to say.

"Job?" Harry asked.

"I'm sorry." McGonagall said as she realized Remus hadn't told anyone but Tonks about the job interview.

"I still don't know if it would be a good idea, Minerva." Remus said slowly. "Don't misunderstand me. I'm very grateful that you want to give me that chance, but in my condition…"

"But you have the Wolfsbane potion!" Harry said. "Snape will make it for you. You have to come back!"

Remus smiled as he saw Harry's eagerness. That was the main reason why he hadn't told him about the job interview. He didn't want Harry to get his hopes up. "That's true." Remus said. "But the parents won't be happy if a werewolf is teaching their children."

"A werewolf who has fought valiantly during the war and has played a vital part in the Order of the Phoenix!" Professor McGonagall said. "And even if they would protest, I'm headmistress and this is my decision. I won't submit to pressure from anyone."

Remus looked at Tonks. "What do you think?"

"You know very well what I think, Remus!" Tonks said. "You are perfect for this job. And you love teaching."

"I do love teaching." Remus smiled. He looked at the four teenagers who were watching him in expectation. "I think this is what I have to do."

"You're doing it?" Hermione asked eagerly. "You're taking the job?"

"I'm taking the job."

Professor McGonagall quickly raised from her chair to shake Remus' hand. "I'm very happy that you accept my offer, Remus. Hogwarts will be glad to welcome you back."

Harry walked over to Remus and hugged him. "Congratulations, Professor."

"_**A teacher affects eternity. He can never tell where his influence stops." – Henry Brooks Adams**_


	4. Chapter 4: A Wedding and a Prophecy

**Chapter 4: A Wedding and a Prophecy**

Now that Remus had accepted the job of Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher, Harry was looking forward to his return to Hogwarts even more. But before he could even think of that, he needed to survive the days before Remus and Tonks' wedding, living in the same house with the bride. Three days before the big day, Remus, Harry and Jacinta were sitting in the living room when Tonks barged in, panic-stricken.

"Remus, we forgot something!"

Remus suppressed a smile and looked at his fiancée. She had come to him in this state five times in the last three days, every time worrying about something that they hadn't planned for their wedding and he had to tell her every time that they had already taken care of it.

"We don't have someone to perform the ceremony!" Tonks said.

"Honey." Remus said patiently. "Kingsley will be officiating. We asked him weeks ago, remember?"

"Oh, yeah. Right." Tonks dropped into a comfortable chair. She was only able to relax for a minute though. "But what if he can't make it? He's been so busy."

"He will be there." Remus reassured her. "Kingsley wouldn't miss our wedding for anything."

A couple of minutes later, Ginny and Hermione arrived to go with Tonks to Madam Malkin's. She had to pick up her wedding dress and the girls needed to go with her for their bridesmaid dresses. All of them were squealing with excitement as they left for Diagon Alley.

"I just can't believe how they can get so excited about clothes." Ron's voice came from the door. He entered the living room and dropped down in the chair that had been occupied by Tonks.

"Hi. I didn't know you were coming." Harry said surprised.

"Yeah, well. With the girls gone and dad at work, there's not much to do at home. And mum is going completely mental about the wedding too. I'll never understand them." Ron shook his head as to express his incomprehension of the other sex.

"Be glad you don't have to go with them." Remus said. "I'm glad that weird tradition exists about the groom and the wedding dress. I think I wouldn't survive if I had to help Tonks pick one out."

"You guys!" Jacinta sighed exasperated. "I can't believe how the three of you got such amazing girls to go out with you!"

"I know, me neither." Ron said. "Why not again?"

"Tonks is a girl. She has been dreaming about her wedding day ever since she was six." Jacinta, said as if she was explaining something to a two-year old. "She wants it to be perfect."

"Six?" Harry asked. "Who thinks about marriage when they're six?"

"Girls." Jacinta said.

Harry and Ron grinned at each other as they saw the familiar expression on the younger girl's face. "You have been hanging out with Hermione too much, Jacinta." Ron said. "You're becoming just like her."

Jacinta huffed and walked out of the room, leaving three very amused men.

(-) – (-) – (-) – (-) – (-)

Harry was feeling slightly nervous at breakfast on the day of the wedding. Not only would he be the best man in a wedding today, but this would also be the first time he would return to Hogwarts since the end of the war. The rest of the school year had been cancelled to give the teachers the chance to restore the school. O.W.L. and N.E.W.T. students had been forced to take their exams at the Ministry of Magic once everything was back to normal there. Ginny and Luna were still awaiting their results.

Harry looked up when Remus walked into the kitchen. If he was already nervous about just being in the wedding then how must Remus feel? But the werewolf seemed to be fully relaxed.

"Aren't you nervous?" Harry asked as Dobby loaded Remus' plate with eggs and bacon.

"Why would I be nervous about?" Remus asked calmly. "I'm marrying the greatest girl in the world."

"Are you ever not calm?" Harry laughed. "I would be terrified if it would be my wedding."

"Good to hear." Ron's voice came from the doorway. "I don't have to think about kicking your ass any time soon then."

"When did you get here?" Remus asked surprised, while Harry laughed.

"Just now." Ron sat down and grabbed some toast.

"He hasn't used the Floo Network ever since he got his Apparition licence." Harry said. "Wants to show off."

"It took me long enough." Ron grinned.

"What are you doing here so early anyway? We don't have to leave for another two hours."

"I had to get out of there." Ron said seriously. "I thought they were bad the last couple of days, but now they are completely off their trolley."

"Did you see Tonks?" Remus asked.

"Yeah, she's a mess." Ron said. "Not in a bad way." he added quickly when he saw Remus' face. "She's not having second thoughts or anything. She's just determined that something will come up to ruin the wedding."

Harry could kind of relate what Tonks was going through. After everything that happened over the last few years, it was rather strange to realize that it was all over. He found it hard to believe that nothing else would come up to make their lives difficult.

(-) – (-) - (-) – (-) – (-)

Harry and Remus were standing side by side in the Gryffindor common room. They were standing in front of the window, looking down on all the guests that were being led to their seats by various members of the Weasley family. Tonks was getting ready with her bridesmaids in the Hufflepuff common room downstairs.

"Are you ready?" Harry asked after a long silence.

"More than ever."

Harry looked at his guardian and smiled when he saw the man's face. He looked happier than Harry had ever seen him. He realized what a long way Remus had come when he compared the man next to him to the man he was one year ago, just after Sirius died. He silently thanked Tonks for that.

"I'm so happy for you." Harry said softly as they left the common room.

Remus put an arm around his shoulder as they made their way down the marble staircases. "I know, Harry. And I'm happy that you are standing up there with me."

"We are gathered here today to celebrate the union of a very remarkable witch and wizard." Kingsley's deep, calm voice was carrying away over the grounds. Tonks and Remus were holding each other's hands in front of him, beaming at each other. "There is nothing in this world that is more beautiful than the love between two people. _Any_ two people."

"Do you, Nymphadora Tonks, take Remus Lupin to be your partner in life, equal in love, promising to honour and cherish, through good times and bad, until death do you part?"

"I do."

"Do you, Remus Lupin, take Nymphadora Tonks to be your partner in life, equal in love, promising to honour and cherish, through good times and bad, until death do you part?"

"I do."

"As Minister for Magic, it is my greatest pleasure to pronounce you husband and wife." Kingsley waved his wand over the heads of the happy couple and a shower of red and purple stars fell upon their entwined fingers. "You may kiss the bride." he added, smiling at least as widely as Remus and Tonks.

Remus and Tonks kissed each other softly, receiving a deafening applause from the guests. Harry looked at Ginny, who was standing behind Tonks. Her eyes were filled with tears, but she too was smiling widely. When Remus and Tonks had finally let go of each other, they both hugged the newlyweds.

"Congratulations." Harry muttered while he was firmly embracing Remus. "You couldn't have picked someone better."

They were quickly engulfed by a crowd of guests who wanted to congratulate the happy couple.

"Let's get out of here before we get trampled." Harry said. He grabbed Ginny's hand and pulled her away from the commotion.

"We'll see you guys later!" Ginny quickly said, but it would be a miracle if Remus and Tonks would have heard her. They were forced to shake hands with every single person in front of them.

Harry and Ginny finally found Ron and Hermione and they sat down at one of the tables by the lake. They were immediately offered a glass of champagne by one of the waiters.

"Mum would better not catch you drinking." Ron said warningly as Ginny accepted her champagne.

"Look who's suddenly holier than Merlin." Ginny grumbled.

Ron ignored her and watched all the guests scurry around. "I really hate weddings." he said. "What's all the fuss about anyway?"

"You don't want to get married then?" Harry asked surprised.

"Well, yes." Ron answered. Hermione raised her eyebrows. "No! I mean – "

Harry and Ginny laughed at Ron's uneasiness.

"Would you relax." Hermione said. She was holding back her laughter herself. "I'm not expecting anything soon. Don't worry."

They were quickly joined by Neville Longbottom, who apparently had found the courage to ask someone to be his date to the wedding, as he was accompanied by a pretty girl who seemed to be a couple of years younger than him.

"Hi guys." he said, looking happy to see them again. "This is Astoria. She'll be starting her fifth year in September."

"Hi." Astoria said softly. Although she wasn't normally a very shy person, she was quite nervous being introduced to four of the most legendary students of Hogwarts.

"Hi." Harry said. "Aren't you Daphne's sister? She's in our year, isn't she?"

Astoria nodded.

"You're a Slytherin, aren't you?" Ron asked with raised eyebrows.

"I am." Astoria admitted. "But don't hold it against me."

"We'll try." Ginny laughed.

Astoria smiled at her. She looked extremely relieved that Neville's friends weren't judging her because of the fact she was sorted into Slytherin.

"Did you see, Luna?" Harry asked Neville. "She was invited, wasn't she? It'll be great to see her again."

"I have actually." Neville smirked. "But I think she's a little preoccupied at the moment." He gestured towards the dancing guests and they saw Luna and Fred bouncing between them, hurting several people in the process.

"What the hell are they doing?" Ron mumbled.

"I _think_ they're dancing." Harry said slowly.

"If those two ever have a kid, that will be the weirdest toddler this world has ever seen."

"Hey, there's Hagrid!" Ginny said excitedly. Indeed they saw Hagrid apologizing elaborately to Remus and Tonks for destroying one of the tables by bumping against it with his knee. "Let's go say hi."

"So how's it going with Neville?" Hermione asked Astoria as they followed their friends.

"It's going well." the younger girl smiled. "I really like him. Thanks for setting it up."

"I knew you would." Hermione said proudly. "And it's the least I could do."

After talking with Hagrid for a while and retrieving old memories together about their earlier years at Hogwarts, they were approached by Kingsley Shacklebolt.

"I'm sorry to interrupt." Kingsley smiled at them. Today was the first time they had seen him since he had been appointed as new Minister for Magic. "But I won't make it long. Harry, there are a few matters that I wanted to discuss with you. I know tomorrow's your birthday, but would it be alright if I stayed a while longer after dinner?"

"Yeah sure. No problem." Harry said quickly.

"Great." Kingsley said. "Oh and I think it would be wise if you guys would also be there." he added, looking at Ginny, Ron, Hermione and Neville. "And ask Luna to stay too." They all agreed and Kingsley left them alone again.

"What was that all about?" Ron asked.

"No idea." Harry said truthfully. "I reckon we'll hear tomorrow."

Ron and Hermione and Neville and Astoria soon got to their feet to dance and Hagrid had gone off to talk to Charlie Weasley. Harry smiled at Ginny. "I'd ask you to dance too, but I think I recall you saying you hate dancing."

Ginny smirked at him. "Hate is such a strong word."

"Oh, right. It was just an act of rebellion against your mum, because she wanted to make you do girl stuff."

Ginny laughed. "You remembered that for an awfully long time."

"How I could I forget?" Harry said.

They both looked towards the lake. They were only a couple of yards away from the spot where they had sat down after the Yule Ball and talked for hours, now already two and a half years ago. Harry smiled as he remembered that night and how nervous he had been, sitting next to Ginny.

"We've come a long time, haven't we?" Ginny asked softly.

"Yes. We have."

"You know." Ginny said, smiling again. "Dancing isn't quite that bad, if you're with the right person."

Harry smiled too, got to his feet and took her hand. "Let's go."

(-) – (-) – (-) – (-) – (-)

Minerva McGonagall felt rather sad and even guilty about leaving Remus and Tonks' wedding early, but she had no choice. She had made an appointment for this evening weeks ago, not considering the date and she always was someone to keep her appointments. She apparated to Diagon Alley and entered the Leaky Cauldron were she would be meeting a possible new colleague. Although Remus had agreed to come back to teach Defence Against the Dark Arts and Severus had finally decided to stay, there were still two positions at the school that needed to be filled. Both Madam Hooch and Firenze had sadly been killed during the Battle of Hogwarts. Minerva would have preferred to cut Divination from the curriculum, but the school board would have nothing of it. Therefore she had grudgingly agreed to allow an interview with Cordelia Trelawney, daughter of her deceased colleague Sybill.

Minerva had been highly sceptic when she learned the name of the woman who wanted to apply for the job of Divination teacher. Although Albus had told her Sybill truly possessed the gift of Sight – she had in fact been the one to make the Prophecy about Harry and Voldemort – Minerva still thought she was a fraud, simulating everything. Therefore, she was quite surprised when Cordelia showed actual knowledge about the subject and could even talk to her in detail about Ovomancy and Heptomology. Telling Cordelia to look for her owl, Minerva got to her feet, said goodbye and walked towards the door of the private room Tom had provided for them. It happened right before she wanted to grab the door handle.

"_Before the next summer, three powerful objects will finally be reunited. He who has preserved our entire world from a terrible disaster will be the one to carry them. Descending from the third one and mentored by the one who tamed the first one, he will be the only person able to carry them all. For he is the only person able to resist the temptation of immortality. The objects will come to him, without him looking for them, for he has not the intention to use them to increase his powers, but to serve and protect the people of his world. Three powerful objects will be reunited before the next summer."_

"_**Marriage is not the beginning of the journey, nor the end. It **_**is **_**the journey." – **_**Jarod Kintz**


	5. Chapter 5: The True Story

**Chapter 5: The True Story**

Remus and Tonks had decided to start their honeymoon on the first day of August, so that they would still be home for Harry's seventeenth birthday. In the morning, Remus took Harry to the Ministry of Magic to take his Apparition test, which he passed easily. After lunch, Ginny, Ron and Hermione came over and they spend the afternoon outside together with Jacinta, enjoying the hot summer day. They stayed outside until Tonks called out to them that the guests had arrived for Harry's birthday dinner. When Harry entered the kitchen of Grimmauld Place, he was met by the rest of the Weasleys, various Order members and all the members of Dumbledore's Army. Even Draco Malfoy showed up. Harry was especially glad to see his class mate Seamus Finnigan. He had been released from St Mungo's not so long ago, but he was still having a hard time coping with the death of his best friend.

It wasn't until late that night that everyone had gone home and Kingsley finally had the opportunity to talk to the teenagers in private.

"I'm glad you're all here." Kingsley said as they sat back down at the kitchen table with bottles of Butterbeer in front of them. "I realized I never said this, so in the first place I want to thank you all for what you did. The six of you have done an amazing job during the battle and were vital in Voldemort's demise."

"Harry killed him." Ron said. "We just did what we could to help."

"What was an awful lot, like I hear it." Kingsley smiled. "I have talked to a lot of your teachers and some of the other DA members and they all seem to look at you as the six leaders of the group. I don't know where we would have been now if it weren't for you guys."

The six friends looked at each other uncomfortably. It was always rather embarrassing to be praised like that, especially by an ex-Auror and the new Minister of Magic, who also happened to be one of the most important members of the Order of the Phoenix.

Kingsley smiled as he saw their uneasiness. "That being said, I also have an offer for you." He paused and took a sip from his Butterbeer before he continued. "I'm sure that you know what a mess the Ministry was after the war. We have been able to sort out most of the pressing matters, but there's still a lot of work to do. One of my greatest concerns that I still have is the Auror department."

"What do you mean?" Harry asked.

"Unfortunately, a lot of my old colleagues have given their lives during the war. Apart from the terrible losses we suffered, it also burdened us with a big organizational problem. Gawain Robards has succeeded me as Head. He is an amazing Auror and is doing a great job, but he is coping with a big shortage of staff. Therefore he asked me for permission to twist the rules a bit."

"What rules?" Ginny asked.

"The terms on which a person would be allowed to enter the Auror training program." Kingsley explained. "You probably know that you need a certain number of N.E.W.T.'s and then you still have to go through three years of training before you can become an Auror. The current situation however, forces us to change that. We decided to let every member of the D.A. join the training program immediately. The training will also be combined with actual Auror work."

"Are you saying we can join the Aurors?" Harry asked surprised. "Like, right now?"

"If you want to, yes." Kingsley said. "It speaks for itself that we would be very happy to have you. Gawain in particular would very much like to welcome you to his team."

Harry's head was spinning. He knew he wanted to join the Aurors. It was the only career he had ever wanted, but he had also been looking forward to his final year at Hogwarts. Of course, the purpose of that year would be to join the Aurors after that and Kingsley's offer made it rather unnecessary to go back. As much as he would like to have a happy, quiet year at Hogwarts with Ginny and his friends, he also realized that he had to do what he could to help Kingsley and the Ministry to set things back to normal.

"I don't need you to answer me now." Kingsley said. "In fact, I don't want you to answer me now. Think about it. Talk about it. And certainly don't feel obligated to accept. Choose what you think is best for yourself." He particularly looked at Harry at this last part. "I'll be in touch."

After Kingsley had left the six teenagers remained silent for a rather long time.

"Wow." Neville finally said.

"What he said." Ron agreed. "Robards wants us to join his Aurors without even finishing school?"

"They must really be having a hard time to form a decent team." Hermione said sadly. She looked at Harry who knew exactly what she was thinking.

"You're not going to accept, are you?"

Hermione shook her head and looked at him apologetically. "I'm sorry, Harry. I would love to work with you, but I think I'm done with the whole fighting thing."

"I know." Harry smiled. "Don't worry about it. I never really expected you to become an Auror."

"I think I'm going to accept." Ron said.

"Yeah, me too." Neville said. "But I think I want to finish my seventh year first. I promised Professor Sprout to help her with a project this year and my gran would be rather pissed if I didn't finish school, even if it was to join the Aurors."

"I don't know." Harry said slowly. "I really want to, but it would mean that we're never going back to school."

The others nodded understandingly. They all knew how much Hogwarts had meant and still meant to Harry. Ginny took his hand and squeezed it softly. "I think you should do it." she said.

"Really?" Harry asked surprised.

Ginny nodded. "It's what you always wanted. I know you'd probably still have the chance to join them in a year, but why wait? You're ready." She smiled. "Besides, you'll never be happy if you aren't chasing dark wizards somewhere."

They all smiled at her last remark. "What about you?" Harry asked.

"I'm thinking about it." Ginny admitted. "But I'll also finish school first. I'm only in my sixth year after all."

"You have your O.W.L.'s." Hermione pointed out. Ginny had indeed received her O.W.L. results a week before and had done splendidly. The only class she failed was History of Magic.

"Yeah, but still…" Ginny said. "I think mom would have a heart attack if both Ron and I leave school early."

"What about you Luna?" Harry asked. The Ravenclaw girl had remained remarkably silent during the discussion.

"I don't know." Luna answered truthfully. "As much as I don't want to let Kingsley down, or you for that matter, I really don't think it would be for me. I think I'm done fighting too."

"Yeah." Ron agreed. "You're not the fighting type. I think hunting Crumply Snorkacks or something would suit you better." He winced as Hermione's fist hit his upper arm, but Luna merely smiled.

"So you guys really are going to do it then?" Hermione asked Harry and Ron.

The two best friends looked at each other for a moment, reaching a silent agreement. "Yes." Harry finally said. "We really are."

"It's going to be weird going back to Hogwarts without you two." Hermione said sadly. Harry felt bad for her. He knew it would be strange for the others too, but Hermione had always been with them, since their very first year. Since that faithful day when they knocked out a twelve feet tall mountain troll. Not having her around all the time and both be amused and annoyed by her incredible brightness would be rather hard to get used to.

(-) – (-) – (-) – (-) – (-)

_THE SECOND WIZARDING WAR: THE TRUE STORY  
by Xenophilius Lovegood_

_A lot has been said and written about what happened at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry last June. Mostly we heard overstatements, half-truths and outright lies. The only thing that we knew for sure is that Harry Potter, known to the greater wizarding world as The Boy Who Lived or the Chosen One, was the one who killed Lord Voldemort and saved our world from a terrible fight. Very understandable, Mister Potter has shielded himself and his friends and family from the press during the weeks and months after the Battle of Hogwarts. We at the Quibbler, however have received the privilege of an exclusive interview with the hero. After talking with Potter and several people close to him, we reconstructed the real story of what happened from the moment of Lord Voldemort's first downfall nearly sixteen years ago and his definitive downfall._

_One year ago, the Daily Prophet published the news about a Prophecy that would have been made about Harry Potter and Lord Voldemort, stating that Potter was the only person that would ever be able to stop the darkest wizard of our time. Potter opens our interview with a surprise._

"_However strange it may sound, Rita Skeeter has published the truth that day. For once… To this day, I still don't know how she got hold of that information, for it was only known by a select few people that I trust with my life. The Prophecy was made by Sybill Trelawney, former Divination teacher at Hogwarts. She was regretfully killed by Voldemort during the war, so it was clear that he too knew about the Prophecy. It is my belief that he made sure the contents of the Prophecy became public, with the sole intent of putting more pressure on me. Manipulating people was always one of his greatest 'qualities'."_

_People may wonder why Voldemort chose to seek out the confrontation with Potter. According to the Prophecy the boy would have a power the dark lord knows not. It seems strange that Voldemort chose to follow Potter to Hogwarts to fight him, apparently not even concerned that he might meet his end there._

"_I won't go into detail about this, as I don't think it would be good if too much was known about Voldemort's actions over the years." states Potter. "But the truth is that Voldemort had taken precautions in case his body was attacked. He had taken steps over the years, chasing immortality. What he didn't know was that Albus Dumbledore had discovered his secret and had made sure that Voldemort was mortal again. Voldemort, who didn't know about this obviously, thought he was safe when he came to Hogwarts. It wasn't until shortly before his death that he found out, when it was too late."_

_The name has fallen: Albus Dumbledore. It was a big shock for our entire world when the news of his demise came out. It looked like all hope had been lost. Dumbledore was the only man known to wizardkind who was able to match Voldemort's powers. But apart from that, people also had a lot of questions about him. It was never clear what the exact purpose of the Order of the Phoenix was. Most people knew that it was a secret society formed by Dumbledore, but a lot of people were questioning Dumbledore's intentions with it._

"_The Order of the Phoenix is indeed a society that primarily operates in secret, but the only reason for that is their own safety. Every member of the Order has fought Voldemort and his Death Eaters on various occasions. I think it's obvious it wouldn't be good if the whole world knew who is in it. Especially when Voldemort was still powerful."_

_Potter admits that the Order is very similar to Dumbledore's Army, the group that was formed by Potter himself at the beginning of the second wizarding war. According to several Hogwarts teachers, Dumbledore's Army, also known as the D.A., has contributed greatly to the defence of the castle. _

"_Dumbledore's Army is a selection of the bravest students this school has ever seen." says Minerva McGonagall, former Transfiguration teacher and head of Gryffindor house and current headmistress. "Potter has surrounded him with friends who he can trust blindly. Each and every one of them have fought Death Eaters on several occasions with the skill and nerve of much older and more experienced witches and wizards. To me, those young people, together with the members of the Order of the Phoenix are the real heroes of this war. Not the bigwigs at the Ministry."_

_A lot of questions have raised about the Ministry of Magic. How is it possible that from one day on another, Voldemort was able to get hold of the entire Ministry and by extension, the entire country? Were the rumours of corruption and betrayal within the Ministry's walls true over all these years? Was Minister Scrimgeour already a puppet installed by Voldemort to prepare the take-over?_

"_I don't believe that for one second." says Potter. "I disagreed with a lot of actions from Minister Scrimgeour, but I am absolutely sure that he never worked for Voldemort. The only thing I know is that there has been a battle at the Ministry, but I wasn't there that day so I don't know much about it. The fact that Scrimgeour was killed during the attack however, should prove to everyone that he always stayed incorruptible."_

_It is time to cut to the most intriguing subject of all: the Battle of Hogwarts and the final duel between Harry Potter and Lord Voldemort. A lot of stories have been published already, but none of them hold the entire truth. It seems that all the reporters who came up with their own fantasies have done so needlessly. The truth is just as thrilling as any legend known in our world. We heard the tale of one of the eye witnesses that fought during that battle: Bogdan Petkov, headmaster of Durmstrang._

"_I have witnessed a lot of things during my life, including the legendary duel between Albus Dumbledore and Gellert Grindelwald, but this was probably the most extraordinary thing I ever witnessed. During their duel, Potter and Voldemort shot two spells at each other simultaneously. When the curses hit each other, their wands were connected by a golden beam of light. They started to move out of the Great Hall towards the grounds. When they landed there Voldemort broke the connection, panicking. They were both thrown back and Voldemort reacted more quickly than Potter. I thought it would be over, but then Dumbledore's old pet arrived and dropped something at Harry's feet. I couldn't see very well what it was, but suddenly Potter had a sword in his hand and finished Voldemort off. I was told later that it was the sword of none other than Godric Gryffindor."_

_A thrilling tale indeed. Apparently, Dumbledore's pet that Petkov mentioned was a Phoenix. A very loyal, but fickle creature. The only way a Phoenix would ever come to the aid of someone is if that person was extremely loyal to the Phoenix' master or if the Phoenix sees the person worthy of becoming his new master when his old master passed. Seeing as Dumbledore was killed a couple of weeks before the battle, the last statement seems to be most likely._

"_I don't know." says Potter. "Fawkes came to my rescue once before when Dumbledore was still alive. I haven't seen him since and have no idea where he is. But I'll be forever grateful to him. He saved my life twice."_

_And probably hundreds of lives with him. The true story of what happened that night at Hogwarts School may be less bloody and violent than many stories that were published before, but it is clear that it will be told many times in the future. You can be sure that many years from now, parents will tell their kids about how the entire wizarding world was saved from a terrible fate by a brave, young wizard by the name of Harry Potter._

_Priori Incantatem – what happened between Potter and Voldemort's wands during their duel? We asked Britain's most famous wandmaker, Garrick Ollivander: page 5_

_Who is the real Harry Potter? We talked to several close friends and family members of the Boy Who Lived: page 7_

_Albus Dumbledore – Fallen Hero: page 10_

_The New Leaders – double interview with Minister for Magic Kingsley Shacklebolt and Hogwarts headmistress Minerva McGonagall: page 12_

_In Memoriam – a tribute to the victims of the First and Second Wizarding War: page 15_

"So what do you think?" Luna asked eagerly as Harry looked up from the magazine. She had brought a copy to the Burrow, where Harry and Jacinta were staying while Remus and Tonks were on their honeymoon.

"It's quite good, actually." Harry answered. He couldn't help but sound a bit surprised. He had been a bit nervous to see what Luna's dad had made of his interview, especially when he told him that he would publish a special war edition of the Quibbler, but he was the only reporter he trusted not to twist everything he said. "Everything's exactly like I said it. Although I think he overdid the praising a bit."

Luna smiled. "I knew you would say that. But it's the truth, Harry."

"At least, you'll be able to go out into public without being trampled to death now." Ron smirked.

"Let's hope so." Harry said. He patiently waited for Ginny to finish reading the article before he took her outside to take a walk.

"I think you did good giving an interview to Xenophilius." Ginny said when they sat down by the Weasleys' pond. "Ron's probably right. They'll leave you alone now."

"Not likely." Harry mumbled.

Ginny laughed. "Well, maybe they'll just go back to staring then. That's something."

Harry smiled, pulled her close and kissed the top of her head. "Yeah, it's something." He closed his eyes and breathed in the flowery scent of Ginny's hair. He thought about what would happen in a couple of weeks. He would start Auror training in London and Ginny would go back to Hogwarts for her sixth year. They would barely see each other in months. He had gotten used to having her around all the time over the last few years. They were always together, either at Hogwarts, the Burrow or Grimmauld Place. Even when they lived apart during the first month of the summer, they saw each other practically every day. He held Ginny even more tightly as the fear of losing her to some slick Hogwarts student increased.

"_**We all make choices, but in the end our choices make us." – Ken Levine**_


	6. Chapter 6: Diagon Alley

**Chapter 6: Diagon Alley**

Diagon Alley was as crowded as it always had been before Voldemort came back to power. It had taken a while for people to accustom themselves to their recovered freedom, but now the narrow, paved alley was bubbling with energy once more. Not all the traces of the war had been erased, however. There were still a lot of shops that hadn't re-opened yet and a couple of shops that would never open again. Florean Fortescue, the owner of the ice cream parlour and an old acquaintance of Harry had been killed when the Death Eaters found out he had allowed Muggle-borns to take refuge in his home. Ollivander, who had been captured and tortured by Voldemort, had recovered quite well, but he still hadn't opened his business again.

"I hope he'll be able to open soon." Hermione said as they passed the sealed wand shop. "The new term is only three weeks away. The first years will need wands."

"I'm sure he'll open up soon." Remus said. The werewolf had accepted the invitation of Harry, Hermione, Jacinta and the two youngest Weasleys to accompany them to Diagon Alley rather than sitting home and worrying about Tonks. The Aurors were following a lead on a possible hiding place of some of the Death Eaters that were still at large. Remus was silently hoping it was a false trail. He knew perfectly well to what it would come if they actually found them. Those people had nothing to lose anymore.

"All right, that's about it." Hermione said, checking her list of school supplies. "We just need to stop by Flourish and Blotts for our books." Harry and Ron groaned loudly and Ginny smiled knowingly.

"What's wrong?" Remus asked. "It's not like you two need textbooks."

"We don't." Ron said. "But you're about to witness something intriguing, yet something so painfully annoying."

"What's that?"

"Hermione in a bookstore." Harry simply answered.

Not less than 45 minutes later, Hermione exited Flourish and Blotts with five very tired friends in her wake. Insisting that he needed a drink, Ron led them to one of the many crowded, sunlit cafe terraces.

"This is better." Ron said approvingly when the waitress brought them five jugs of cold Butterbeer.

"So, are you looking forward to the new term?" Remus asked the girls.

"Yeah, should be great." Ginny said. "It'll be a nice change to have a quiet school year again. And we finally have our favourite Professor back."

"Kiss ass." Harry's cough was nearly convincing enough. Nearly.

"I'll do my best." Remus laughed while Harry was rubbing the sore spot on his upper arm.

"We probably should get going." Ron said as he checked his watch. "Mom will flip out if we come home late."

"Be glad she let us come to Diagon Alley without her." Ginny said as they made their way to the Leaky Cauldron.

The moment they stepped into the pub, they were cornered by a crowd of complete strangers. Xenophilius' article had the desired effect to the extent that Harry could go into public without being bothered constantly. Now however, it was a little over five o'clock in the afternoon, which meant that the Leaky Cauldron was overcrowded with customers. Harry got hold of Ginny's hand in the chaos and held on for dear life, fervently wishing that he could get rid of that bloody scar on his forehead.

"All right. That's enough, you maggots. Leave them alone!" a gruff voice came from behind them. "Come on, you lot." They were dragged into a room behind the bar. It was only when the man had closed the door behind them that Harry realized Tom had come to their aid.

"Thanks, Tom." Remus said politely.

"What were you thinking coming in here at this hour." the barman said abruptly. "Use my private Floo. Otherwise you won't get out of here in the next few hours."

They all thanked Tom, before taking the Floo Network back to Grimmauld Place. Ginny, Ron and Hermione wanted to see Tonks before they returned to their own homes.

"We should have used Fred and George's Floo." Ron said as Harry was the last one to step out of the fireplace. "It – " He abruptly stopped talking when he saw Harry's face. "What the – "

"Expelliarmus!" On pure instinct, Harry reached for his wand, but it was already in Hermione's hand.

"What the hell are you doing?" Harry asked angrily. "Give me my wand!"

But Hermione was now pointing her own wand at Harry. "When was the first time I told you that you were my best friend?"

"What?" Harry stammered. Hermione raised her wand higher. "Right after you saved my life during my first Quidditch match." he quickly said.

Hermione lowered her wand. "Sorry." she said. "I thought you were an imposter."

"How did you think that?" Harry said. "You've been with me all day!"

"Harry, did you do that intentionally?" Remus asked calmly. He was looking at his adopted son with a mixture of confusion and interest.

"Do what?" Harry asked. He was getting quite annoyed by the odd behaviour of his friends.

"Sweetie…" Ginny said slowly. "Your scar is gone."

Harry looked at his friends with open mouth. "If this is a joke, it's kind of lame."

"It's true!" Hermione assured him. She pulled a pocket-mirror out of her beaded bag and handed it to him. When Harry looked at his reflection in the tiny mirror, he saw that the lightning-shaped scar was indeed gone.

"Did you use human Transfiguration on yourself?" Remus asked surprised. Although he didn't doubt Harry would be capable of it, he wouldn't expect him to actually use it on himself. Even to hide his scar.

"Of course not!" Harry said firmly.

"But then you must be a Metamorphmagus!" Ron said excitedly.

"That's not possible, Ron." Hermione said in her well-known pedantic tone. "Metamorphic abilities are always congenital. People can't just become a Metamorphmagus at the age of seventeen. Harry might be rather powerful, but I doubt he could do that."

"It's the Horcrux." Remus said slowly.

The teenagers all looked confused. "What do you mean?" Ginny asked.

Remus sat down at the kitchen table and motioned for the others to do the same. "I think you have always been a Metamorphmagus, Harry. But because of the Horcrux, you never had control over your abilities."

"But the Horcrux was destroyed over a year ago." Harry said. "Wouldn't I have found out before now?"

"Probably." Remus said. "If you ever had actually tried to change your appearance."

"Then why now?" Ron frowned. "It's not like he tried to change his appearance today, is it?"

"I think I did, actually." Harry explained to his friends how he had wished his scar would disappear when they were cornered by all those people in the Leaky Cauldron.

"And that really was the first time you ever changed your appearance?" Remus asked.

"Well, there was this one time I made my hair grow back when my aunt had cut it." Harry said slowly. "But that was even before I found out I was a wizard."

"I'm pretty sure it's the only explanation." Remus said. "And if you practice enough, you will be able to change your appearance whenever you want. I'm sure Tonks will be glad to help you with that."

Harry saw how Remus' face showed the concern for his wife again. It was her first day back at work since they came back from their honeymoon and he knew how much his friend was worrying about Tonks. He hoped she would be home soon.

"She'll be alright, Remus." Ginny said, also noticing the look on the werewolf's face. "Tonks is a tough one."

"I know she is." Remus said seriously. "I just have a bad feeling about today."

The five teenagers tried to reassure him, but by the time the Weasleys and Hermione had gone home, Tonks had still not returned. As time passed, Remus grew more quiet and nervous. Harry and Jacinta didn't know what to say anymore to put him at ease. To tell the truth, Harry began to worry about Tonks too. She had never come home this late since the war had ended. None of them said a word until finally, green flames burst up into the fireplace. However, it wasn't Tonks who greeted them, but Gawain Robards, head of the Auror Office. Harry felt his heart sink when he saw the expression on the Auror's face.

**A/N: I'm terribly sorry for the long wait. I know it has been ages since I last updated this story, but I have been extremely busy. I'm afraid this chapter is rather short too, but the good news is that I should have a bit more time now, so you can expect updates more frequently and also some longer chapters. **


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